The Beginnings of Love, or Maybe Just Some Really Good Cupcakes
by yeehaw02
Summary: When Dia learns that Hanamaru has never made cupcakes, she swears to teach her, but the project is put on hold when Ruby has to go get eggs. Just the two of them, a new kind of feeling develops in Hanamaru and Dia.


"Have you really never made cupcakes, Hanamaru-chan?" The dark-haired Kurosawa asked.

The brunette shook her head. "Never." She responded., causing the other girl to sigh.

"Well, there is enough ingredients to make some…and I'm sure Ruby wouldn't mind helping…very well, it's decided. We will make cupcakes this afternoon." Dia declared before starting to pull out the necessary tools and ingredients. Hanamaru stood in amazement.

"Wait, really?"

"Okay, I'll be off now!" Ruby cheerfully called with one foot out the door. Dia chased into the living room.

"Be careful! And don't get distracted by sweets, we only want eggs from that money. Understand?" Dia asked, handing her sister a small amount of money.

"Understood! I won't fail you!" And with that, Ruby was on her way to the store. Dia returned to the kitchen where Hanamaru was waiting.

"It seems Ruby will be back in a little while. And, knowing her, it'll be longer then we plan anyways. I'm not sure she knows her way to the store." Dia trailed off, removing a small box of cookies from a drawer.

"Ruby's super smart, I don't think she could get lost.." Hanamaru's correction took Dia by surprise. "Dontcha think so too?" She added after seeing Dia's reaction.

Dia sighed. "While Ruby has a lot of heart, she often lacks in smarts. I think with you around, however, she doesn't have to worry about matching any sort of standard. You balance her naivety out well with your intelligence, Hanamaru-chan." She brushed her long black locks out of her hair as she complimented the first-year.

"That's so nice of you to say," Hanamaru cried, bringing the other girl into a hug. Feeling her body stiffen at the sudden affection, the brunette felt the need to withdraw yet couldn't bring her arms to loosen. "Is something wrong, Dia-san?"

Hanamaru felt Dia's heartbeat increase in speed. "Nothing, I'm just not used to hugs like this." Dia answered, her voice with only the slightest falter.

"Not even from Mari-san?"

A tiny smile formed from Dia's lips. "Mari isn't as..warm as you are." She explained, trying to put a word on what she was feeling.

The moment stayed silent as both girls lingered in their embrace until Dia cleared her throat, signaling for Hanamaru to release her. She complied, allowing Dia to smooth out the newly formed wrinkles in her red blouse.

"Now, while we wait for Ruby to return, would you like to watch some idol dvd's with me? Surely there is one you haven't seen." Dia offered, moving to her bedroom to search for her collection of dvd's. Hanamaru swiftly followed.

"Yes please! I would love to see idols on a screen." She said dreamingly as she entered the bedroom that Dia and Ruby shared. Being friends with Ruby, she had spent some time in the room, but it was different being alone with the elder Kurosawa.

"Alright, I'll see what we have." Dia muttered, already sifting through the cases her and her sister had collected over the years. Once she found the right one, she let out a sigh of contentment. "Here, this one is of Muse. You should enjoy it- I know I have."

"Thank you very much Dia-senpai!" Hanamaru cried.

"Eh?" Dia sputtered, surprised by the first-year's outburst. "I suppose you're welcome. It's not a big deal though." She commented on the use of honorifics.

Hanamaru smiled anyways, glad she could have such an experience.

With barely enough time for the admiration to fade out of Hanamaru's eyes, Dia moved to the living room where they would watch the dvd. As she popped it in, she found herself looking forward to seeing Hanamaru's reaction to muse's performance. She knew that the brunette had never truly seen school idols, much less idols as renowned as muse, and she smiled as she pictured how she would enjoy the video.

Dia shook the sticky sweet visions out of her head and joined Hanamaru behind the table. Muse's intro song played, and the nine girls came out as their names were displayed on the giant screen above them. It was standard for a seasoned fan such as Dia, but just a glimpse at the idols had Hanamaru delighted.

"How are you enjoying it?" Dia asked a few songs in. She knew from the start that this was the perfect disk to show the first-year, as it featured not only muse's best hits but a few of the members' solo songs as well. It was the dvd her and Ruby loved the most, thus it only made sense for it to bring the same amount of raw joy to Hanamaru. Regardless, she asked to spark a conversation.

"I love it so much, zura!" The brunette loudly replied.

Dia smiled at her response. "Good. I thought you would. By chance, do you have a favorite girl yet?" As she asked the question, she bit her lip, hoping for a certain answer.

There was silence as Hanamaru thought. Aside from the dvd she was being shown, she had seen pictures of the muse members in Ruby's magazines, so she was pretty familiar with them. At the very least, she knew their personalities.

"Well?"

After another moment, Hanamaru answered. "I think I like Rin-san the most."

The third year let out the tension she had been holding in sadly. For some reason, she had truly been hoping to share a bias with her underclassmen. When she realized it was because she had been acting more and more like Eli, she clenched her fist a little. Why did she suddenly want Hanamaru's affection so much? It was so out of character for her.

"Dia-senpai? Did I say something wrong?" Hanamaru worriedly asked, seeing Dia filled with anger.

Hearing the concern in Hanamaru's voice, Dia forgot about her inner turmoil, or whatever she was on about, and put on a sleek smile.

"No, you said nothing wrong, I just..remembered I forgot to tell Ruby to get frosting as well. I apologize for worrying you."

"Hmm, It's fine, zura."

They finished the dvd in mostly silence, and Hanamaru cried at the end, when the girls gave their goodbye. Dia cried too, but she didn't let her kohai see. She went back to her room to get another dvd when she heard the door open from across the house, letting her know that Ruby had returned. With the arrival of her sister, Dia forgot about the dvd's and hurried back to the living room.

"Dia! I did it!" Ruby yelled excitedly, holding the carton of eggs like it was a prize. "I followed your instructions perfectly, and I only got lost once! Luckily there was a third-year from another school to help me. Ooh ooh, and she let me use her bike!" Ruby's energy level was high, proven by her loud run-on phrases.

"Ah, so that's why you're back early." Dia muttered. She sighed and spoke louder. "Well, that's good. Since you're here with the eggs, we can start preparing the cupcakes."

"Thank you so much Dia-san, I had so much fun today." Hanamaru said as she stood outside their house. The golden sunset signaled the end of their day, since Hanamaru had to bike all the way home. She begged to stay overnight, but Dia insisted she leave before it got dark.

"It was no problem." Dia said honestly, hoping the warmth in her cheeks was just from the hot sun. Or maybe she had already accepted that she had begun to favor the brunette. "Ride safely, and if it gets too dark to see, use that flashlight I gave you." She advised.

"Okay! See ya!" Hanamaru yelled as she rode away. The smile on her face had never been bigger as she recalled all the fun she had today. Even though she had fun with both the Kurosawa sisters, she seemed to enjoy the parts with Dia more.

Maybe it was just the delicious cupcakes on the perfect summer night, but neither Dia nor Hanamaru wanted it to end.


End file.
